Table of contents for 2021-11-16 in Star

Edward West edward.west@inl.co.za GLOBAL brewer, Netherlands-based Heineken, has made a R38.5 billion offer for Distell, South Africa’s biggest alcohol group and the owner of brands such as Amarula, Nederburg, JC le Roux and Savanna. Distell’s share price, however, fell more than 7 percent to R169.57 by midday yesterday, indicating that some shareholders may have been expecting a higher price as the price had peaked at R182.59 on Friday, which is more than the R180 per share that Heineken is offering. The Public Investment Corporation, a major shareholder, for instance, was reportedly holding out for a R200 per share offer. The price is, however, well above the R133.35 average price six months ago, when Heineken first expressed its interest. The R40.1bn total offer, a substantial foreign investment into South…

SOUTH Africa’s long-held World Cup dream was literally destroyed in one foul swoop on Sunday at the Cape Coast Sports Stadium in Ghana. The hosts Ghana ran out 1-0 winners over SA’s hitherto unbeaten Bafana Bafana after a dubious first-half penalty turned out to be the decider in the final Group G encounter of the 2022 World Cup qualifying. The way Ghana won the match, rather than the eventual result, left a trail of broken hearts in its wake. Central defender Rushine De Reuck who, according to Senegal referee Maguette N’Diaye was the cause of the bizarre penalty, was inconsolable after the final whistle. His face was buried in his hands on the turf and was helped to his feet by sympathetic teammates. There can be no disputing Ghana dominated…

Viwe Ndongeni-Ntlebi viwe.ndongeni@inl.co.za Since the global spread of Covid-19 from early 2020, there is an emerging body of evidence from several countries that shows that a growing number of people experience prolonged symptoms beyond the initial, acute stage of the disease. A 2021 study, “Characterising Long Covid in an International Cohort: 7 Months of Symptoms and Their Impact”, has found that between 10% and 30% of patients who recover from acute Covid-19 become “long haulers”, still experiencing symptoms six months later. In one study of 3 762 patients who had confirmed or suspected Covid-19, most of whom had symptoms lasting longer than 90 days, 45% needed a reduced work schedule compared to before they became ill, and 22% were not working due to their health. A South African woman, Tammy…

Lehlohonolo Mashigo lehlohonolo.mashigo@inl.co.za PRIVATE Investigator and crime expert Paul O’Sullivan says there is a ready market for stolen jewellery when looking at the spate of recent robberies especially around malls. This is because they are easy to dispose of, have high value and are small, he said. Criminals used various modus operandi, but the primary goal was to get into the door. “Women are useful for getting front doors of jewellery stores opened and for getting locked display cabinets opened. Once inside, they take as much high-value goods as quickly as they can and make off.” On Sunday, ER24 reported that a woman in her 20s died of a gunshot wound during an alleged jewellery store robbery in a mall in Benoni. The store owner in her 30s suffered…

Zelda Venter zelda.venter@inl.co.za MINUTES after an alleged victim of controversial Rivers of Living Waters Church leader Bishop Bafana Stephen Zondo testified how he raped her in 1980 while she was a 7-year-old child, scores of his followers outside court cheered and clapped as he emerged. The sex trial of the 55-year-old Zondo eventually kicked off yesterday in the North Gauteng High Court with the pastor dressed to the tees, pleading not guilty to 10 charges. Zondo, in a loud voice, pleaded not guilty as each charge was read out to him. His advocate, Piet Pistorius, said Zondo would contest “each and every allegation” against him. The bulk of yesterday was spent on an application by the prosecution for the complainants to testify behind closed doors. Prosecutor Cornelia Harmzen told judge…

Nokwanda Ncwane nokwanda.ncwane@inl.co.za AFTER TRYING for four years with no luck, University of Pretoria alumna and Cape Town-based multi-disciplinary artist Andrea du Plessis finally won the Sasol New Signatures Art Competition 2021. Du Plessis, who studied Fine Arts at Tuks and completed a postgraduate diploma in Art Therapy in the UK, won the coveted title for her mixed media work Paloceae Lupantozoa. The work was inspired by Martin Johnson Heade’s Orchids and Hummingbirds series, and consists of a painting created through the traditional oil on canvas technique, that can also be experienced as a multi-sensory animated video. The video component of the artwork, which includes sound, is accessed via an Augmented Reality (AR) animation of the oil painting. “By juxtaposing the 19th century Romantic tradition of painting with emerging technologies,…

LB ANGOMA | Kelvin AS A senior and retired citizen of this country, I listened attentively to Mr Godongwana’s Medium Term Budget speech. Secondly and at the outset I make it known that I am not an economist, and therefore my observations are based on what is crystal clear and easy to understand. The Budget presented a bleak and desolate picture of the current and future prospects. Firstly, the country carries a ballooning debt of R4 trillion. By next year it will cost us R365 billion to service this debt, let alone (pay off) the capital. Secondly, State Enterprises alone owes R883bn, some R290bn is needed for bailouts and part secured by government guarantees. One fears the thought of creditors calling up their paper as did Standard Chartered…

Eshlin Vedan eshlin.vedan@inl.co.za THE South African Football Association (Safa) will be taking action and launching a complaint to Fifa and the Confederation of African Football (CAF) regarding the “poor officiating” in Bafana Bafana’s 1-0 World Cup qualification loss to Ghana at Cape Coast Sports Stadium on Sunday. This was stated in a voice note released by Safa on their social media accounts, and confirmed by chief executive Tebogo Motlanthe “The association has decided to lodge a formal complaint so that the conduct of the match officials is closely investigated by both Fifa and Caf,” said Motlanthe in the post. “But we will be having a press conference that will be telling the nation what will happen going forward.” Bafana coach Hugo Broos was also critical of the refereeing by Maguette…

IF Lewis Hamilton clinches a record eighth world title, it will be in no small part due to Sunday’s against-all-odds Brazil win he ranked as “the best weekend I have experienced in probably my whole career”. On Friday that looked fanciful when he was disqualified from pole in Saturday’s sprint after the stewards detected a minor infringement on his car. Setting off 20th, he produced a vintage overtaking masterclass to take fifth, which dropped to 10th on the Grand Prix grid after a penalty for an engine change. With championship leader Max Verstappen on the front row alongside Hamilton’s teammate Valtteri Bottas on pole, a win looked improbable. “Coming here 19 points behind, only one point ahead in the teams’ championship, we really needed a solid, solid result, but then…

Heartbreak after loss to Ghana BAFANA Bafana’s Fifa World Cup qualification campaign ended in heartbreak following their 1-0 defeat away to Ghana on Sunday night. While Bafana have failed to qualify for the tournament in Qatar next year, the campaign did contain its fair share of positives and negatives. Here, Eshlin Vedan looks at the five moments that defined Bafana’s qualifying campaign. There is no doubt that Bafana’s 1-0 loss to Ghana at the Cape Coast Sports Stadium will be at the back of diehard fans’ minds for years to come, especially due to the manner of the defeat. The Ghanaians were awarded a penalty in a poor decision after Rushine de Reuck was wrongly penalised for supposedly having fouled Daniel Amartey in the goalmouth. Truth be told, Ghana were…

Dineo Faku dineo.faku@inl.co.za VODACOM said yesterday that it had added 6.2 million customers during the half year ended September to service 129.9 million, and unveiled plans to invest more than R10.5 billion in capital expenditure into South Africa’s network in the current financial year amid growing demand for connectivity. Chief executive Shameel Joosub said the capex injection into South Africa’s network was on top of the R47bn the company had spent over the past five years. Joosub said the capex was particularly relevant at a time when many customers continued to work, entertain and educate from home. “A lot of the capex will be spent on towers and making sure that our network is resilient, specifically because of all the outages. Let me give you an example:…

Edward West edward.west@inl.co.za ASTRAL, a leading integrated poultry producer, overcame challenges in the industry and rising costs to declare a final dividend of 400 cents per share for the year to September 30. This brought dividends for the year to 700c, 10 percent lower than 775c in 2020. Revenue increased 13.9 percent to R15.9 billion in a year where the group produced “solid” results and retained a healthy balance sheet, chief executive Chris Schutte sadid yesterday. Total comprehensive income fell 8 percent to R471.6 million. The outlook for 2021, as reported towards the end of last year, had leaned towards more negative influences than positive, a forecast that was borne out, with headwinds including the high cost of maize and soya meal. These prices were…

The unexpected global Covid-19 pandemic forced people, businesses and institutions alike to quickly adapt to a new and uncertain reality. A new reality that disrupted our usual way of doing things and isolated us from normal life and people. Interestingly, technological innovation stepped up to fill this void. Numerous advances were made in the fields of medicine (e.g. vaccine development using technology such as digital twins), virtual communication, e-learning, artificial intelligence (AI), the Internet of Things (IoT) and e-commerce. None of these are totally new technologies, but the accelerated pace of adoption, especially in healthcare and education that are usually quite slow in the adoption of new technologies, was unanticipated. What usually takes years to be adopted, happened in a few months. Digital connectivity suddenly became the focal point of…

Kedibone Modise FROM short story readings, monologues and open mic sessions to the launching of poetry books, “Poetry in McGregor” is all about celebrating the word. Under the theme “Garden of the Beloved”, more than 80 poets from across the country will be showcasing and sharing their works in the charming village of McGregor at the foot of the Riviersonderend mountains in the Western Cape, from November 19 to 21. Some of the poets presenting their works at a handful of venues throughout the weekend include Lara Kirsten, Malika Ndlovu, Danie Marais, Churchil Naudé, Susan Woodward, Diana Ferrus, Christine Coates, Justin Fox, Patricia Schonstein, Dimakatso Sedite, Lynthia Julius, Nondwe Mpuma, Jacques Coetzee and John Maytham. Established in 2013, Poetry in McGregor was the inspiration of Billy Kennedy, a “passionate lover…

Viwe Ndongeni-Ntlebi viwe.ndongeni@inl.co.za Diabetes remains the most common cause of death in women and second for men in South Africa. An estimated 12.9% of the adult population either have Type 1 or Type 2 diabetes while a significant number of people might be undiagnosed, according to the International Diabetes Federation. The Federation adds that by 2035, almost 600 million people would be living with diabetes, and the figure would rise to 642 million by 2040. November is observed as Diabetes Awareness Month and organisations and health professionals are raising awareness about the disease and how to prevent it. “In South Africa, the number of adults with diabetes has soared to more than 4.5 million people. It’s a disease that is increasing globally, mostly because of unhealthy eating patterns and…

HEALTH and Other Services Personnel Trade Union of South Africa (Hospersa) last week said that nearly 100 ambulance crews had been shot at, robbed or assaulted this year after they responded to emergencies. Raising the alarm, Hospersa – a union of more than 60 000 health workers – said the attacks were mostly in the Western Cape, KwaZulu-Natal and Gauteng. Hospersa warned the situation could get worse if the government failed to intervene. Hospersa, with members from both the public and private health sectors, warned the attacks were likely to continue. The union said it had called on the government to strengthen its efforts in providing a safe working environment for its EMS members. The most recent attack took place on Monday morning when an ambulance was attacked in Vredenburg…

Nomalanga Tshuma nomalanga.tshuma@inl.co.za The Miss South Africa Organisation has chosen to stay mum on whether it will be going ahead with sending Miss SA Lalela Mswane to Israel to compete for the Miss Universe title amid growing calls for them to withdraw her candidacy. Following the Department of Arts and Culture’s controversial decision to withdraw its support for Mswane, as well as mixed reactions by political organisations and civil society organisations, the Miss SA organisation is standing firm for Mswane to continue with plans to go to Israel. In a brief comment sent to The Star’s sister paper Cape Argus, the organisation said that it would not comment at this stage on whether or not it will be withdrawing or going ahead and participating. Over the weekend, Arts and…

World 12s in a AN new annual rugby tournament based on cricket’s Indian Premier League (IPL) will be the saviour of South African rugby because rich remuneration will slow the player exodus to the northern hemisphere. This happy revelation is the strong opinion of Jake White, the Bulls and former Springbok coach, who, along with another World Cup-winning coach in Steve Hansen of New Zealand, have aligned themselves with a rugby product that could revolutionise the game. The concept of World 12s was launched in September by its chairman Ian Ritchie, the former England head honcho, and with former chief executives of New Zealand and Wales in Steve Tew and Gareth Davies his lieutenants, the tournament has heavy-weight administration and is clearly no Mickey Mouse event, especially because it has…

Wynona Louw wynona.louw@inl.co.za SPRINGBOK forwards coach Deon Davids says they need to use the momentum they’ve built so far to beat England in their final Test of the season at Twickenham on Saturday (5.15pm SA time kick-off). The Boks have won three matches in a row. In their first match of their end-of-year tour, they beat Wales 23-18 to secure their first win in Cardiff in eight years. They followed that up with a 30-15 victory over Scotland. Prior to that, they also pulled off a stunning victory against the All Blacks in their 101st meeting with their arch rivals. “England are a quality side. Eddie (Jones) is a good coach and they’re making some good plans; they’ve got exciting players coming in,” Davids said. “We know it’s going to…

Siphelele Dludla siphelele.dludla@inl.co.za PRESIDENT Cyril Ramaphosa has sent a strong message to African countries to strengthen the continent’s industrial base and produce goods for themselves and each other. Delivering a keynote address at the second Intra-Africa Trade Fair (IATF2021) yesterday, Ramaphosa said Africa imports about 94 percent of its pharmaceutical and medicinal needs from outside the continent at an annual cost of $16 billion (R245bn). He said this clearly demonstrated that Africa needed to produce its own food and medicines, to strengthen continental supply chains, and to invest in infrastructure and capacitate African institutions. Ramaphosa said the IATF2021 would further cement its position as Africa’s premier trade platform, where African manufacturers can promote and sell more “Made in Africa” goods to one another. “This is critical if we…

Dineo Faku dineo.faku@inl.co.za SHOPRITE shares closed nearly 7 percent higher on the JSE yesterday at R197.80 after recording bumper sales during the quarter ended September 2021 underscoring the effectiveness of its low-price strategy and diversification of revenue streams. Group sales were 9.2 percent while the Supermarkets RSA sales surged by 11.6 percent during the quarter under review despite the double whammy of the civil unrest and the ban on liquor sales. The Supermarkets RSA segment that makes up around 80 percent of sales from continuing operations comprising USave, Shoprite, Checkers and Checkers Hyper stores grew market share over the quarter. Shoprite said the internal selling price inflation for the quarter measured 3.3 percent, virtually unchanged from the 3.4 percent posted for the group’s second…

SOUTH Africans are spending more on snacks, sending snack buying to the highest level since Ipsos began tracking this in January last year. The latest Ipsos Consumption and Shopper tracking study shows the value of snack sales increased by 43 percent compared with the previous year, with cheaper brands gaining traction in various categories. However, the study shows a decline in purchase frequency as consumers spent more than before on snacks when they purchased them. Due to changing lifestyles and an increase in consumer sophistication and product awareness, this was probably no surprise, the study said. Nibbles were more than just treats for consumers; they were also big business for manufacturers and retailers, with snacking becoming a daily occurrence for the modern consumer. This value growth for snacks was largely…

Kedibone Modise The Playhouse Company is hosting the much anticipated Days of Culture Without Borders special concert, produced for Russian online streaming TV, and set to take place on November 20. Directed by Aubrey Sekhabi, the show serves as a celebration of local talent and unity. Hosted by Tony Kgoroge and Leanne Manas, the concert features Thandiswa Mazwai, the Sivuyile Nonzame Xhosa Traditional Dancers, Lonaka Lo Kae Cultural Group, Mbuso Khoza & Afrikan Heritage Ensemble, Thee Legacy and the mighty KZN Philharmonic Orchestra conducted by Chad Hendricks. As part of the Christmas celebrations, the Playhouse also presents the latest edition of Bigly Yuge. Adapted from a script by the late Clinton Marius, Bigly Yuge is a blend of comedy, drama, song and dance theatre. Directed by Kgoroge, the star-studded show…

SHOPPERS, crippled by unemployment and salary cuts brought on by the coronavirus pandemic coupled with rising electricity and petrol prices, might not be storming the doors of retailers on Black Friday next week. V&A Waterfront spokesperson Donald Kau said they are not expecting massive queues. “Our shopping centre does not have large white goods retailers like Dion Wired or Game or a big discount grocer like Checkers where they usually have bigger crowd control challenges,” said Kau. He said they would have retailers offering specials and were confident of managing the numbers of visitors. “Also worth noting is that with Covid-19 regulations still in place shopping centres and retailers are limited in trading hours that are within the regulations of the lockdown,” he said. Cape Chamber of Commerce and Industry…

MOTORCYCLING legend Valentino Rossi, who completed his final MotoGP after 26 years in the saddle on Sunday, thinks retirement will be difficult, “especially in March when the season starts again”. The 42-year-old Rossi, a nine-time world champion across all categories, finished 10th on his Yamaha in his final outing in Valencia, which was his 432nd GP since starting his career back in 1996. “I was motivated and focused as if I was fighting for the championship because the last race is the last race, it’s very important,” said The Doctor after crossing the finish line where he was feted by fans and fellow riders alike. “It was not easy because there was a lot of pressure but I was able to get into the top 10, so that means I’m…

Wynona Louw wynona.louw@inl.co.za DESPITE outstanding individual performances in a team that has shone in 2021, not a single Springbok player has made the World Rugby Player of the Year nominees’ list announced yesterday. The Boks, currently top of the world rankings, beat the British & Irish Lions 2-1 in their series in July. They also pulled off a stunning victory over the All Blacks in their 101st Test against their arch rivals, while they have also won their first two end-of-year internationals against Wales – a historic one which marked their first win in Cardiff since 2013 – and Scotland. New Zealand, who lost to Ireland at the weekend, are also absent from the list. This is the first time since the awards were introduced in 2001 that no South…